Published: April 14, 2009 10:59 pm      

Fire-fighter deserves benefits

EDMOND — Edmond firefighter Tim Vernon recently won a resounding victory in obtaining benefits owed to him by the City of Edmond.

The Oklahoma State Supreme Court recently denied a request by the city to review an appellate court’s decision in Vernon’s favor.

Vernon is expecting to receive medical care provided by worker’s compensation, to receive time and leave back and to be placed on permanent partial disability status.

The city and the firefighter went to court over the denial of benefits after he was diagnosed with colon cancer in 2006. The city sought to challenge existing state law that essentially says firefighters are entitled to benefits if they contract any type of cancer while on the job. The city argued that Vernon’s cancer could have been caused by other reasons.

This Editorial Board is thrilled to see Vernon receive what is due to him.

It remains unclear why the city decided to challenge state law in this instance. Now in addition to Vernon’s benefits, the city also will use taxpayer funds to pay legal fees as the city used outside counsel to represent it in the case.

We believe there are other ways for the city to challenge this state law than fighting it out in the courts. For example, the city’s director of government relations serves as a lobbyist for the city. Why not ask Nancy Nichols to pursue having one of Edmond’s legislators consider new legislation to change how the state handles the issue?

We’re not advocating that the state not take care of its firefighters, but merely pointing out there are less costly ways of taking care of issues the city believes to be a problem. If the city truly believes the legislation is bad, then why not try to eliminate the issue before it comes to a situation like Vernon’s?

The law is on the books and it’s clear that Vernon deserves the benefits as he has faithfully served the city for many years. Until such time as the law may change, Edmond and other cities should take care of their own without the stress of a legal fight.